City of Sault Ste. Marie Community Efficiency Financing Contractor Survey

The City of Sault Ste. Marie (the City) is undertaking a feasibility study to assess the opportunities associated to developing a residential community efficiency financing program. Enerva Energy Solutions Inc has been hired by the City and is requesting input from local residential contractors to determine local readiness and support for a residential sector-financing program, and identify potential program champions and implementation partners. The City is looking to design a low-cost financing offer for homeowners to improve the energy efficiency of their homes. These upgrades can include lighting upgrades, HVAC projects, replacement of windows, added insulation, solar PV, more efficient hot water systems, amongst others. As a local contractor, your input is important to help us understand and design an offer to homeowners. Please fill in the survey and feel free to provide any comments. Your inputs are confidential and will be used for program only. If you have any questions, please contact Emily Cormier, Sustainability Coordinator at the City of Sault Ste. Marie at e.cormier2@cityssm.on.ca

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* 1. General Contact Information

Company Address

Company Website

Contact Person

Contact Phone Number

Contact Email

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* 2. What is the nature of your business?

Installation contractor

Design & consulting

Energy audit

Equipment distributor & supplier

Other (please specify)

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* 3. What market does your business operate in?

Residential

Commercial

Industrial

Institutional

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* 4. What types of energy technologies are offered by your business? (multi-selection, order to be decided)

Geothermal

Insulation

EnerGuide home evaluation

Lighting and electrical

Heating, ventilation and AC

Windows and doors

Solar photovoltaic and solar thermal

Others

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* 5. What the percentage of your work is renovation of existing homes (compared with new construction)?

75-100%

50-74%

25-49%

Less than 25%

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* 6. How many employees are in your business?

Fewer than 5

6-10

11-20

Greater than 20

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* 7. How many years have you been in business?

Less than 2 years

3-5 years

6-10 years

Great than 10 years

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* 8. What areas do you service? (multi-selection)

Sault Ste. Marie

Algoma

North Easter Ontario

Ontario

Other provinces

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* 9. What type of marketing approach are you using?

Website marketing

Social media

Newspaper/ Flyers

Word of mouth

None

Other (please specify)

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* 10. Do you have salespeople?

Yes

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* 11. Has your business been a part of, or promoted any energy efficiency programs?

Yes (specify)

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* 12. Have your customers participated in energy efficiency programs?

Yes

Not sure

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* 13. What percentage of your business is referrals?

<25%

25% to 50%

>50%

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* 14. Are you a member of any trade associations? Please select all that apply.

Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Institute of Canada (HRAI)

North American Insulation Manufacturers Association Canada (NAIMA)

Thermal Insulation Association of Canada (TIAC)

Siding and Window Dealers Association of Canada (SAWDAC)

Sault Ste. Marie Construction Association

Other (specify)

None

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* 15. What licenses do you have ?

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* 16. Does your business use online reviews (eg. Google review, Homestars etc.) or similar?

Yes

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* 17. Are you a member of any referral network (e.g. Homestars, Jiffy etc.)?

Yes

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* 18. What are the average sizes of your energy efficiency projects?

Up to $5000

$5000 to $10,000

$10,000 to $30,000

$30,000 to $75,000

Above $75,000

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* 19. How many energy efficiency projects has your company completed in 2021?

Fewer than 10 projects

11-20 projects

21-50 projects

Over 50 projects

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* 20. How many energy efficiency projects can your company complete with current capacity?

Fewer than 10 projects

11-20 projects

21-50 projects

Over 50 projects

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* 21. How long does a typical energy efficiency project take to complete?

Less than 3 days

4-7 days

Over 7 days

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* 22. How familiar is your company with residential energy saving programs (e.g. Small Business Lighting, Retrofit)?

Very familiar, has participated or helped customers participate in a few programs before

Kind of familiar, has knowledge of some basic concepts and procedures

Not very familiar

Not aware at all

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* 23. How do you receive payments for your energy efficiency projects?

From builders or project leaders

From homeowners

From government

Not applicable

Other (please specify)

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* 24. Do you offer financing options for the equipment and/or installation of equipment in your projects?

Yes